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Mealey's Trade Secret

October 31, 2019
Company’s Federal Claims In Trade Secret Suit Dismissed As Time-Barred

LOS ANGELES — A federal judge in California on Oct. 28 ruled that although an internet-based social media networking and e-learning company failed to plead allegations in support of its federal claims in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit that occurred within the two-year statute of limitations on such claims, amendment of the complaint would not be futile (Stage 32 LLC v. Joseph Tuccio, et al., No. 18-3800, C.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 187582).
October 31, 2019
Preliminary Injunction Elements Deemed Properly Pleaded In Trade Secrets Suit

CINCINNATI — A federal judge in Ohio on Oct. 28 ruled that a freight brokering and third-party logistics services provider’s evidence that it there is a substantial likelihood that it will succeed on the merits of its breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation claims against a former employee and direct competitors is sufficient to grant the plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction (Total Quality Logistics LLC v. William J. Riffe, et al., No. 19-23, S.D. Ohio).
October 29, 2019
Company: Fake Login Credentials Assist Employee In Trade Secret Theft

INDIANAPOLIS — A former employee of an office-solutions company created false login credentials and improperly accessed the company’s confidential and trade secret information after he terminated his employment from the company in violation of certain restrictive covenants, as well as state and federal trade secret laws, the company argues in an Oct. 25 complaint filed in Indiana federal court (Van Ausdall & Farrar Inc. v. Scott Schweitzer, No. 19-4354, S.D. Ind.).
October 25, 2019
Supplier To Fracking Operations Says Its Design For Potable Water Rigs Was Copied

SAN ANTONIO — A water filtering company that provides services to hydraulic fracturing companies on Oct. 4 filed a lawsuit in Texas federal court against two companies, seeking injunctive and monetary relief for trade secret misappropriation and trademark infringement (WaterFleet LLC v. TanMar Rentals LLC, et al., No. 19-1190, W.D. Texas).
October 25, 2019
Judge Denies Defendant’s Motion For New Trial In Trade Secret Theft Suit

CHICAGO — A federal judge in Illinois on Oct. 9 denied a defendant’s request for a new trial on charges that he stole trade secrets belonging to his former employer and attempted to provide those trade secrets to his former employer’s Chinese competitor in the iron foundry business (United States v. Robert O’Rourke, No. 17-cr-0495, N.D. Ill., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 174962).
October 24, 2019
Majority Of Claims In Staffing Company’s Trade Secret Suit Dismissed

DENVER — A federal judge in Colorado on Sept. 25 dismissed several claims in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit brought by a staffing company for the oil and gas industries against several of its former employees and others, ruling that the company failed to state a claim for relief in making those claims (DTC Energy Group Inc. v. Adam Hirschfeld, et al., No. 17-1718, D. Colo., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 165406).
October 24, 2019
Pipeline Inspection Business Hits Former Employees With Trade Secrets Suit

HOUSTON — A company in the oil and gas pipeline inspection industry sued two of its former employees in Texas federal court on Oct. 21, alleging that two of its former employees and their current employer have misappropriated its confidential and proprietary information in the development a competing pipeline inspection business in violation of state and federal trade secret laws (ABB Inc. v. JRGO LLC, et al., No. 19-4109, S.D. Texas).
October 24, 2019
Plaintiff In Trade Secrets Suit Has Not Cured Pleading Deficiencies, Judge Rules

TRENTON, N.J. — A federal judge in New Jersey on Oct. 23 ruled that although a plaintiff’s third amended complaint in its trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract lawsuit against a former employee and others “is more compelling” than its previous complaints, it has still failed to cure the pleading deficiencies that led to the dismissal of those complaints for failure to sufficiently state a claim for relief (Oakwood Laboratories LLC v. Bagavathikanun Thanoo, et al., No. 17-5090, D. N.J., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 183347).
October 23, 2019
TRO In Trade Secrets Dispute Dissolved; Injunction Denied

TACOMA, Wash. — A federal judge in Washington on Oct. 22 granted a motion for the immediate dissolution of a temporary restraining order (TRO) filed by defendants in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit, ruling that after further investigation of the plaintiff’s alleged facts, those facts do not sufficiently support the plaintiff’s allegations that “continuing injunctive relief is necessary” (Precision Industrial Contractors Inc. v. Jack R. Gage Refrigeration Inc., et al., No. 19-5810, W.D. Wash., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 182774).
October 22, 2019
Company Sues Competitors, Former Employees For Trade Secret Misappropriation

HOUSTON — Several former employees of affiliates of a provider of integrated industrial safety services to the petrochemical refining, pipeline and industrial sectors engaged in a scheme to misappropriate the affiliates’ confidential and trade secret information prior to departing the affiliates to accept employment with a competitor in violation of state and federal trade secret misappropriation laws, the provider and its affiliates argue in an Oct. 18 first amended complaint filed in Texas federal court (Total Safety U.S. Inc., et al. v. Code Red Safety & Rental LLC, et al., No. 19-3836, S.D. Texas).
October 22, 2019
Attorney Fees, Costs Awarded In Trade Secrets Dispute

PHOENIX — A federal judge in Arizona on Oct. 18 substantially granted a defendant’s motion for an award of attorney fees and costs in a trade secrets misappropriation lawsuit, ruling that a majority of the plaintiffs’ objections to the motion are “baseless” (Excel Fortress Limited, et al. v. Vaughn La Verl Wilhelm, et al., No. 17-4297, D. Ariz., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 180856).
October 18, 2019
Parties Debate Whether Summary Judgment Is Proper In Trade Secrets Suit

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal district court should grant a summary judgment motion filed by defendants in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit filed by a technology company against its former employees and rival because the company’s brief in opposition to the motion fails to adequately identify the trade secrets the defendants allegedly misappropriated in a way that would distinguish them from commonly known matters in the payment processing market, the defendants argue in an Oct. 15 opposition brief filed in California federal court (Citcon USA LLC v. RiverPay Inc., et al., No. 18-2585, N.D. Calif.).
October 18, 2019
DTSA Claim Dismissed As Time-Barred Under 3-Year Statute Of Limitations

CLEVELAND — Dismissal of a claim for violation of the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) claim is warranted because plaintiffs in a trade secret misappropriation and trade dress infringement lawsuit failed to bring their claim within the three-year statute of limitations, a federal judge in Ohio ruled Oct. 16 (Barrio Bros. LLC, et al. v. Revolucion LLC, et al., No. 18-2052, N.D. Ohio, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 179092).
October 17, 2019
Peptide Manufacturer Hits Former Employee, Competitor With Trade Secret Suit

LOS ANGELES — A manufacturer of peptides and peptide-related molecules sued a former employee and a direct competitor in California federal court on Oct. 14, alleging that the defendants misappropriated the company’s trade secrets for its proprietary “Global Quality System” in violation of the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) and common law (PolyPeptide Laboratories Inc. v. Brant Zell, et al., No. 19-8820, C.D. Calif.).
October 16, 2019
Jury Awards Produce Technology Company $31M In Trade Secret, Patent Dispute

WILMINGTON, Del. — A federal jury in Delaware on Oct. 11 found defendants in a trade secret misappropriation and patent infringement lawsuit liable for trade secret misappropriation and patent infringement and awarded a company that specializes in development of technology for the preservation of fruits and vegetables more than $31 million in damages (AgroFresh Inc. v. Essentiv LLC, et al., No. 16-0662, D. Del.).
October 15, 2019
No Abuse Of Discretion Found In Ohio Trial Court’s Ruling On Trade Secret Claims

COLUMBUS, Ohio — A divided Ohio appeals panel on Sept. 30 ruled that a state trial court did not abuse its discretion in applying Ohio’s trade secrets act to find that a former employee of a boxing gym franchise and the gym he opened after the franchise closed misappropriated the franchise’s confidential and trade secret customer information when he accessed password-protected software to obtain its customer list to solicit customer business by email after the franchise ceased operations (MNM & MAK Enterprises LLC, et al. v. HIIT Fit Club LLC, et al., No. 18AP-980, Ohio App., 10th Dist., 2019 Ohio App. LEXIS 4076).
October 11, 2019
Third-Party Complaint Claims Trimmed In Trademark, Trade Secret Dispute

MIAMI — In an Oct. 9 order, a federal judge in Florida partially granted a motion to dismiss in part filed by counterdefendants in a trademark infringement lawsuit, ruling, in particular, that counterplaintiffs in the action have failed to sufficiently state their counterclaim for trade secret misappropriation under Florida trade secret law (VVIG Inc. v. Henry Alvarez, et al., No. 18-23109, S.D. Fla., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 175304).
October 11, 2019
Personal Jurisdiction Sufficiently Shown In Trade Secrets Dispute

CINCINNATI — A federal judge in Ohio on Oct. 8 ruled that a medical device maker has sufficiently shown that personal jurisdiction exists over its claims in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit against former business associates based in China under Ohio’s long-arm statute and the due process clause of the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (AtriCure Inc. v. Dr. Jian Meng, et al., No. 19-0054, S.D. Ohio, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 174499).
October 11, 2019
Court Found To Lack Jurisdiction Over Claims In Sears’ Trade Secrets Suit

CHICAGO — Dismissal of all claims in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit brought by appliance retailer Sears Authorized Hometown Stores LLC against its competitor is necessary because Sears failed to show that a federal district court has subject matter jurisdiction over Sears’ claims, a federal judge in Illinois ruled Oct. 9 (Sears Authorized Hometown Stores LLC v. Nationwide Marketing Group LLC, No. 19-3403, N.D. Ill., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 175205).
October 09, 2019
Judge Dismisses UCL, Breach Of Contract Claims In Suit Over Proprietary Information

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A federal judge in New York on Sept. 26 granted a California company’s motion to dismiss a New York company’s California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and breach of contract claims but allowed claims for trade secret misappropriation and replevin to proceed in a dispute over proprietary information (ValveTech, Inc. v. Aerojet Rocketdyne, Inc., No. 17-6788, W.D. N.Y., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 165556).
October 09, 2019
Pfizer Seeks Dismissal Of Claims In Trade Secret Dispute With Merck

PHILADELPHIA — A federal judge in Pennsylvania should deny pharmaceutical company Pfizer Inc.’s motion to dismiss a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit filed against it and one of its employees because each of Pfizer’s arguments in support of its motion is meritless, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. argues in an Oct. 7 opposition brief filed in Pennsylvania federal court (Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. v. Pfizer Inc., et al., No. 19-2011, E.D. Pa.).
October 09, 2019
Summary Judgment Motions Granted In Trade Secret Misappropriation Suit

CHICAGO — A consulting firm has failed to show that a genuine issue of material fact exists allowing its breach of contract, unjust enrichment and trade secret misappropriation claims to proceed against its former business partner, a federal judge in Illinois ruled Oct. 8 (Mission Measurement Corp. v. Blackbaud Inc., et al., No. 16-6003, N.D. Ill., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 174057).
October 07, 2019
High Court Declines Review Of Terminating Sanctions Order In Trade Secret Suit

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 7 declined to review a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling upholding the issuance of a punitive sua sponte terminating sanctions order (TSO) in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit (Loop AI Labs Inc., et al. v. Anna Gatti, et al., No. 19-59, U.S. Sup.).
October 03, 2019
Panel Overturns Dismissal Of Some Claims In Trade Secret Misappropriation Suit

NEW YORK — A Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Oct. 2 said a federal judge erred in ruling that a company failed to sufficiently plead that confidential and proprietary information that a former employee of its exclusive distributor allegedly misappropriated in an attempt to divert customers away from the company and to a rival was, in fact, secret (Continental Industries Group Inc. v. Mehmet Autunitic, No. 18-1239, 2nd Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 29576).
October 03, 2019
Trade Secret Dispute Over Alleged Contract Breach Remanded To State Court

MIAMI — A federal judge in Florida on Oct. 2 ruled that remand of a breach of contract and misappropriation lawsuit to state court is necessary because the defendant in the action failed to show that the amount in controversy exceeds the statutory requirement for removal (Mi Pulpe LLC v. Mexilink Inc., No. 19-23529, S.D. Fla., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 170751).